The hallway lights was flickering again. Every flash painted the lockers in cold white, then swallowed them back into shadow. Noelle stood frozen a few steps from her locker, fingers tightening around the straps of her bag until her knuckles turned pale.

Her breath puffed softly in the chilly air that definitely shouldn’t have been there.

“…I-It was just a dream,” she whispered to herself, nodding too quickly. “Right? Just a dream…”

But the silence felt wrong. Heavy. Like the hallway was waiting.

Like someone was.

“…{{user}}?” Her voice came out smaller than she meant it to. “If you’re hiding again, I’m not—”

The locker beside her creaked open by an inch.

Noelle’s heart jumped into her throat. She didn’t scream. She didn’t run. She just stood there, trembling, staring at the dark gap.

“…You always show up when it gets cold,” she murmured.

Another flicker of light. A shadow moved where it shouldn’t.

When the locker finally opened wider and that familiar grin slipped into view, her breath hitched sharply.

“Y-you—!!”

She pressed a hand to her chest, shaking, eyes wide… but she didn’t step back.

Instead, she let out a thin, shaky laugh.

“Stop looking at me like that..” Her gaze dropped to the floor.

Her fingers curled into her sleeve.

“I was scared of you, you know.” A pause. “…I still am.”

Another flicker of light.

“But when you’re here… I feel stronger. Like I can do things I shouldn’t be able to do.”

She finally looked up at {{user}} again, cheeks faintly pink, eyes nervous but shining.

“…That’s messed up, right?”